


Like a Bruise

by UnknownHero



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Blackwatch Jesse McCree, Dad Reaper | Gabriel Reyes, Gabriel Reyes is Not Abusive, Gen, Non-Consensual Groping, Protective Gabriel, Sexual Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-30
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-18 16:26:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8168434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnknownHero/pseuds/UnknownHero
Summary: Trust is not an easy thing to come by. But Gabriel Reyes might be the person for the job.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Look, I just don't like the idea of Jesse going from one abusive situation to another. Also, please head the warnings! While the rape tag is not for completed rape, I'm throwing it on there anyways. Thank you!

* * *

 

Being in a gang was not what it cracked up to be.

Jesse sighed for what felt like the millionth time. The handcuffs were starting to hurt and he was bored of waiting. He didn’t know why the wait was happening. The raid had been scarily efficient and he had been tackled, handcuffed and thrown into a truck before anyone even knew what was happening. In the confusion, he had lost his hat. That had annoyed him more than anything. A few bruises were nothing. He had earned that hat in a poker game. Did these guys have any idea how much work he had put into cheating that game?

He sighed again.

Outside, he tried to adopt the same nonchalance he always had. But deep down inside, he was scared of going to prison. He had joined the Deadlock gang out of necessity. There weren’t a whole lot of opportunities for a homeless kid and when they tried to trap him in the system of neglectful and abusive foster parents, he had run. His fellow gang members were often cruel and some had hurt him in some pretty painful ways. But he still had a measure of freedom. Even if that freedom had come at the cost of someone using his body.

It was going to be worse in prison and he didn’t think he could survive it happening again. Jesse could face down violence and gunfire. He could hang with violent criminals and protect warlords. But the idea of that happening again made his stomach clench.

Suddenly, the door slammed open. This was it. A big man strode in, a scowl on his face. His dark skin did little to hide the scars on his face and a black beanie was pulled on his head.

“Why would you wear that?” Jesse pointed with his head. “It’s a hundred fuckin' degrees outside.”

The man didn’t respond, choosing to flip through a stack of papers. “How old are you?”

“Twenty one.” Lying about his age was easy. He had been eighteen for years.

The man slammed his hand down on the table and Jesse jumped at the noise then glared at the offending hand. “Don’t lie to me, kid. I’m not in the mood for this bullshit.”

Weighing his options, he opted for the truth. “Seventeen.”

The stranger nodded. “Jesse McCree.” How had they gotten his name? It wasn’t like he carried ID around. “Screw up kid runs away from home then joins a gang. That about sum up your life?”

Jesse hardened his jaw. _The two out of three ain’t bad_ , he thought.

The man walked behind him and Jesse tensed, waiting for an attack. It never came and instead the handcuffs were undone. He rubbed at the red marks and a folder was put in front of him. Taking a chance, he turned to look at the man. “Who are you?”

“Your chance to actually do something, for once. I’ve seen you in action, McCree. You’re a hell of a shot and nothing seems to faze you. I need someone like that on my team. So here’s the deal: You give us some names and places with the Deadlock gang. Afterwards, you get a chance to join a new special ops team for Overwatch. Training will be hell and I expect the best out of you. I catch you slacking off or disrespecting me, the deal is off. Fail to meet expectations, and the deal is off. But if you succeed, and for some reason, someone up there thinks you will, then you will be part of something actually worthwhile.” The man leaned back and sneered at him. “Or you can go rot in some prison cell. Your choice.”

Jesse’s head spun. No prison in exchange for giving up some names. If his leaders got wind that he blabbed about what he saw, he was dead. But if there was one place he could be protected, it was Overwatch headquarters. “Can I have time to thi—“

“Five minutes. Make up your mind.”

Jesse tapped his fingers on the table. If he was going to die, he may as well get something out of it. There was no loyalty amongst criminals. Time to start accepting that. How long until he got screwed over by someone who got offered a similar deal. “Okay. Okay, I’ll do it.”

The man nodded. “Smart choice.” He slapped the folder down in front of Jesse and handed a pen. “Once you sign this, you’re mine, McCree.” He straightened. “I’m Commander Reyes. Welcome to Blackwatch.”

Signing the papers should have felt like a noose around his neck. Writing the names and locations of Deadlock members and hideouts should have been terrifying. Dealing with the gruff commander should have been frustrating. But this was his shot at a better life. He was determined to not mess this chance up.

* * *

 

His determination lasted all of five days. Occasionally, Blackwatch operatives would wander in to observe training. Most of them did it silently, eyes and faces carefully blank whenever someone stepped up to take a shot or throw a punch. But some weren’t so quiet, as he discovered. A man was lounging with a couple of buddies, observing the new recruits during shooting practice. They had been making comments with an almost sleazy candor until he noticed Jesse. He recognized the naked delight in the man’s eyes and turned away to take his shot.

“Think the newbie would look good on his knees?”

Jesse made the shot even though his hands were shaking.

“Not that I really care if he wants or not. All criminal scum are the same.”

He should have kept his head down and ignored it. But all his instincts told him to make the first move. It was how he had defended himself in the Deadlock gang. Start enough fights and nobody would want to hurt you anymore. So he took three steps and let his fist fly. He had the advantage that no one was expecting to him to throw a punch and he got the older, bigger man in the nose. There was a small crunch and a spurt of blood. The man rocked back and cried out in pain. Before his buddies could do anything, Reyes was there. The commander’s eyes were blazing and he hissed at Jesse to step out into the hall. The small group glared at him and Jesse knew there would be hell to pay later.

Outside, Reyes rounded on him with a snarl. “Do you mind explaining to me why you thought you could attack one of my soldiers, McCree? You keep acting like that and I will dump your ass back to prison!” When Jesse didn’t answer, he leaned in. “Well? Have anything to say for yourself, recruit?”

There was no point in trying to defend himself. He was the criminal and the man he punched was already established. In hindsight, it was just a comment. But Reyes didn’t know. He didn’t know the look in someone’s eyes when they wanted something Jesse wasn’t going to give up easily. So he steadied himself, and summoned the same bored tone he used when talking to authority figure. “No, sir. He just had a face that needed punching.”

He waited for the hammer to drop. Reyes glared at him for an eternity. “Kitchen duty, for the next week, McCree.” The commander entered the practice room without looking back.

The punishment was light. He had assaulted a senior officer and only walked away with cleaning the kitchen. When Jesse came back in, nobody looked at him and the group was gone. He happened to meet the eyes of one of the women and she gave him a small nod of approval. That made it all worth it. He finished his drills with a grin on his face.

 Cleaning the kitchen and Blackwatch mess hall had to be done when everyone was gone, so Jesse wouldn’t get to go to bed on time. He ground his teeth in frustration when he dragged the mop out from the cleaning closet. Under the watchful eye of the head cook, he mixed the right amount of cleaning solution with water.

The cook scowled at him. “Everything in the kitchen is accounted for, recruit. Don’t think you can sneak extras if you want them.”

Jesse bit back the insult he wanted to spit out and gave a lazy smile instead. “The dinner was just fine, thanks.”

The cook grumbled something and left him to the cleaning. In the silence of the hall, Jesse let his mind wander. So far, this gig wasn’t too terrible. Yeah, he had to mop a stupid room for the next six nights but it could have been so much worse. Commander Reyes could have left him at the mercy of the men, like his boss had so many times. His mouth got him into trouble and his stupid pride never let him back away from an insult.

He got through half the room when a door slammed open. His head jerked up and the soldier he had punched was there. His nose was bent and bruised. Inside, Jesse crowed at the victory. Outside, he held still.

The man dragged his boots over the clean floor, trailing mud and dirty water all over the place. He turned and feigned shocked at the mess then spit over it. “Oh no, recruit. Someone made a mess here. Better get over here and clean it up.”

Behind Jesse, another door slammed open and he didn’t have to turn around to know that the other two would be behind him. Sweat formed on his palms. This wasn’t supposed to happen here.

The soldier took a menacing step forward. “You broke my nose, you little shit. I was going to make this easy for you. But if you want a fight, I’ll give you a fight.”

Jesse backed up. There was nowhere to go. Both exits were covered and the door leading outside was locked in the kitchen. His best bet was to get a weapon and scare them off. Or, if they wouldn’t listen to his threat, he would fight them off.

Jesse brought the mop up and threw the dirty end at the man and took off. There was a loud curse and quick feet. He had reached the door when a hand wrenched his arm back and another wrapped around his throat.

Fucking enhanced soldiers.

A punch to the gut had him gasping for air as someone growled, “Hold him!” He was dragged into the kitchen. He tried to yank himself out of the iron grasp but received a dizzying punch to his jaw for his trouble. The two cronies bent him over the counter, painfully leaning all their weight on his arms. He tried to kick backwards and the man laughed cruelly. A blade was pressed to the back of his neck.  

“Go on, kid, kick me again. See what happens.” Jesse doesn’t kick, but he does fight, twisting and trying to buck the men holding him down off. A line of fire is slashed on the base of his neck and he cried out in shock and pain. “Oops, knife slipped.” The blade pressed into his skin again and another cut joined the first. Jesse grit his teeth and hissed. It hurt and he could feel blood welling up. “That time wasn’t a mistake, kid. Do you want to keep fighting?”

His response was a screamed curse and almost dislocating his shoulder trying to wrench his arm free.

The man sighed mockingly. “Fine, if that’s how you want to play it.” The blade slipped into the waistband of his pants and with a vicious tug, the man sliced a cut. The remaining cloth was ripped off and his boxers soon followed. Jesse froze, his mind going frighteningly blank. This wasn’t supposed to happen again.

The man gave a wolf-whistle and slapped his ass, making Jesse flinch. “Damn, recruit, someone was holding out on us. Remind me to thank Reyes for this later.”

The mention of the commander left Jesse winded. Did he know that this was going to happen? The idea that Commander Reyes would throw him to the wolves like this stung a lot more than he was willing to admit. His internal struggle was interrupted by the sound of someone spitting and a wet finger was pressed tight against his hole.

“Ask me nicely, kid, and I’ll make it easy for you.”

He wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction of seeing him beg. “Fuck. You,” he snarled.

The finger jabbed inside him. Pain ripped up his spine and Jesse moaned, pressing his face to the table to try and smother any noise. Someone laughed above his head and another finger was shoved inside of him. Breathing through his nose, Jesse bit the inner muscle of his cheek until blood filled his mouth. He wasn’t going to cry. God damn it, he wasn’t going to cry.

Suddenly, a new voice joined the fray. “What the hell is going on here?”

Jesse closed his eyes in pain and humiliation but opened them to stare at Gabriel Reyes. The man was furious, lip curled in a snarl and eyes angry. Thinking it was for him, Jesse hid his face so he wouldn’t have to see the moment his dreams of a better life were ripped from him. Even if the commander didn’t join in, the story that would be told would make him look like he was ready to take anyone’s dick.

His arms were released and everyone stepped away from him. One of the men stuttered out a weak, “Commander, we were just…”

“You were just, huh? The only reason I don’t kill all three of you right now is because I don’t want to deal with that paperwork.” The man’s voice was like steel dripping in ice, making everyone squirm. “You all have 24 hours to turn yourself into disciplinary and admit to everything that just happened right now. If you don’t, I will know. And I will come find you.”

There was a rush of noise as the three men scrambled to comply with the order they were given. Jesse still hadn’t moved from being pressed down on the counter. In the silence that followed, he carefully glanced at Reyes. The man was giving him an indecipherable look. Thinking it was safe, he tried to pull what was left of his pants and boxers back up. The rip was too big though and he just clutched the torn fabric around his waist.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then, sir?” Hoping Reyes would take the hint, he tried to leave but the other man dropped a heavy hand on his shoulder. Jesse couldn’t hold back the flinch and Reyes took back his hand.

“McCree…” Whatever the commander was going to say died awkwardly in his mouth. Instead, he gruffly ordered, “Come back to my quarters. I have some bandages for your neck.”

He didn’t want to. All Jesse wanted to do was clean the floor and go back to his bunk. He wanted to forget what happened today. He wanted to forget about the twinges of pain from the fingers forced inside of him. He wanted to forget about the other times where he hadn’t been so lucky. And most of all, he wanted to forget about how the leader of Overwatch’s covert-ops team just threatened to murder three men for him. Reyes had made it clear what his opinions were about Jesse. It was all so confusing and it made his head hurt.

But instead, he muttered a sarcastic, “yes sir,” and followed Reyes thought the winding hallways to the room. The commander had his own private quarters that were bigger than anything Jesse had seen so far. Even in the army, there was always someone who came out on top. Reyes gestured to his couch and Jesse awkwardly perched on the edge. The other man entered one of the doors leading to a bathroom and rummaged around. He came back in with a first aid kit. Frowning at the ripped clothes, Reyes produced a pair of sweatpants and threw them at Jesse.

“Put those on.” When Jesse didn’t move, he sighed. “Kid, I’m not going to do anything and it’s nothing I haven’t seen before. Put them on.”

Scowling, he complied slowly. The pants were way too big and he double knotted the tie at the waist. He glared at Reyes who shrugged. “It’s that or nothing.”

“Yeah, well, don’t expect me to happy about it or anything.” He was being difficult, maybe even straying into dangerous territory. But he was overwhelmed from the events of the day. Rage, humiliation and fear were coursing through him.

“McCree—“

“Why are you even helping me? Did you bring me here just so you could do it yourself?” He backed up, looking for an exit. “I’m not a whore. I don’t do that—“

“Sit down, Jesse.” The order had the same level of steel from earlier and Jesse sat back down. He was proud of himself for not shaking.

Reyes frowned again. “I brought you here is because you could probably use some privacy. But if you would rather go to medical, fine. But you’ll have to make a report and deal with that shit that comes with that. And I’m not that type of asshole. I won’t touch you like that. Ever.” The conviction that lay there made Jesse uncomfortable. No one had ever made a promise like that. He wanted so badly to believe it. He was saved from answering by Reyes flipping the kit open and retrieving some supplies.

The older man murmured, “Turn around. I have to clean the cut on your neck.”

He carefully turned around and a large hand settled on his hairline. Reyes was as gentle as possible, pushing his hair up and cleaning the cut out. It stung but Jesse ignored it. A tense silence hung in the air until the commander broke it by asking, “Is this why you punched him out?”

It struck him as ridiculous that he didn’t even know the name of the man who had assaulted him. “Yeah, and I’m still not sorry about it.”

Reyes sighed. “Why didn’t you say something?”

At that, Jesse turned around and gave the man an incredulous look. “Would you have believed me?”

A long stretch of silence gave him all the answer he needed. He turned back around, embarrassment making his eyes sting. Yeah, he was a criminal. But to hear that everyone would have assumed he was lying about this hurt.

The commander finished cleaning out his wounds and bandaged them up. When Jesse tried to get off the couch, the pain in his arm flared and he cursed. An icepack was handed to him and he pressed it to the sourced of the hurt. Reyes slid a chair across from him and also handed off some pills and water. Jesse scowled at them suspiciously. The man sighed and said, “it’s painkillers, McCree. For the cuts and for the…”

“For getting someone’s fingers shoved inside me,” he drawled. The wince from Reyes made him glow in savage triumph even though he felt like he was dying inside. It helped to treat the whole thing casually. It was like it happened to another person.

Reyes closed his eyes as if pained. “Look, McCree. I’m not…” The man leaned back with a sigh. “I’m not good at this. But I’m sorry, alright? I’m sorry one of my men did this to you.” Jesse refused to meet his eyes, fidgeting with the drawstring on the pants. “I know I’m a hardass and you can even hate me sometimes. But I will never touch you like they did. I will never be that asshole. All I will ever want is for you to follow my orders and train your ass off. Got it?”

Jesse shrugged, wanting to leave more than ever. “Sure.” He scrubbed at his face and to his mortification tears gathered in his eyes. He took a shaky breath and tried to hold them back. But everything came rushing back and the choking fear gathered in his chest and throat. It had been a while since he felt that kind of terror. It transported him back to being the scared kid who was helpless to stop the oncoming pain. He had been so confused and lonely afterwards. And he was confused and lonely now.

He didn’t realize Reyes was moving until he was swept up into a tight hug. When he froze, the other man started to pull back but Jesse tugged him back. Finally letting go, he broke down and sobbed loudly. Reyes didn’t say anything, just let him cry out the emotions until all that was left was a bone-deep exhaustion. Then Reyes spoke, “Has this happened before?”

Jesse nodded. Something loosened in his chest and a little of the fear he carried around like a bruise disappeared. He hadn’t admitted to anyone what had happened. There was no one he could turn to and so he had stamped everything down. It was difficult to smile and joke around after what happened, but he had done it. Being comforted after a traumatic event was a new thing for him but it was helping bleed some of the tension free.

Reyes didn’t let him go and Jesse stubbornly clung to the comfort being given. “Alright, McCree, I have a one night offer for you to sleep here. Hopefully, those sons of putas will be in the brigg already.” Jesse stiffened. The idea of having to lay out what happened out for people to judge and evaluate made him feel sick. Sensing his distress, Reyes murmured, “I’ll be the witness. You will have to talk to a victim’s advocate and sign some papers, but that’s all. I’ll make sure they regret even thinking of hurting you.”

Jesse's laugh had a tinge of hysteria and he wished he had his hat to hide behind. Reyes made it sound so easy. It was one thing to dance around a vague description with someone who saw it happen. But telling someone else would make it real. But in that moment, he was too tired to contemplate the consequences of what had happened. He smothered a yawn and blinked the oncoming sleep out of his eyes. His exhaustion didn't mean much. There would be nightmares later.

But Gabriel Reyes was helping him up and pushing him gently towards the bedroom. Jesse hesitated at the sight of a bed. But Reyes didn’t touch him, instead waiting patiently until he entered the room. Jesse lay down, and sighed at the softness. “Man, what do I have to do to get a bed like this? The bunks feel like someone stuffed them with bricks.”

The joke lessened the tension and Reyes gave him a mocking smirk. “Well, kid, if you can follow simple instructions, you might get a better bed. Hell, they might even promote you one day.” He flipped the light off before Jesse could respond and shut the door behind him. That was the nicest thing anyone had ever said to him.

The commander was quickly being filed away under the list of “safe” people as opposed to “obvious threat.” Reyes still had a long way to go until he had completely earned Jesse’s trust. But it was good to know the man would have his back when the shit went down. Jesse was surprised with how quickly sleep came to claim him. He expected to be up all night turning the events of the day over and over in his head. His neck still hurt from the cuts and there was still a twinge from between his legs whenever he moved too quickly. But all the same, he curled up and an odd warmth grew in his chest. It took him a while to figure out what it meant.

Safe. For the first time in a long time, he was safe.

Jesse McCree wasn’t alone anymore.

* * *

 

 


End file.
